‘We did not back down.’ Rural Kentucky drag show will go on despite opposition

A drag show happening Saturday in Mt. Sterling has been sold out for weeks but has met some opposition in the form of accusations of immorality and online threats.

The local response to the show — part of a line up of events for the Montgomery County town’s second-ever LGBTQ+ pride event — has been “90% positive,” said Jordan Campbell, the executive director of the Gateway Regional Arts Center, the nonprofit hosting the drag show and a subsequent brunch Sunday with drag performers.

The negative responses the show received include an op-ed in the local newspaper calling the show “immoral,” a petition to stop the show was passed out at churches and a handful of online threats guaranteed the show will have security.

It’s not the first time this year a drag performance in rural Kentucky has gotten push back. A March show in Floyd County opted to switch the show online after receiving threats. As LGBTQ+ communities have gained visibility in rural places across Kentucky and the country, they’ve encountered a rise in anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and legislation.

For the Mt. Sterling show, Campbell said the positive feedback outweighed the show’s detractors. Multiple people have reached out to say the show makes them feel validated in the community, which is “why we’re doing it,” said Campbell, who is gay and grew up in Mt. Sterling.

“The end goal is that people who feel marginalized or people who feel like they’re in the shadows in their communities, in rural communities, see that we did not back down,” said Campbell. “We did not back down to the hate that they have experienced their entire lives.”

Those opposed to the drag show said it would be insulting to women or damaging to the morality of local children.

A Mt. Sterling drag show

Drag shows “expose our children to extreme sexual immorality, it degrades the simple moral character of our community and takes the innocence of our children and grandchildren,” wrote Mary Wilson in an op-ed in the Mt. Sterling Advocate. Wilson signed the op-ed as a mom, nanny, youth leader and citizen of the county. She’s also the county treasurer.

A petition — asking local citizens to say “NO to Drag Show Events” — was circulated at local churches. Written in pen on the back of the petition were instructions on who to return the petition to. Wilson’s name and “Courthouse Annex” were written on the back.

Willie Carver, a former Montgomery County teacher who said he left the school system after facing anti-gay discrimination, said the use of the annex for political activity was illegal and an abuse of Wilson’s office.

Carver voiced those concerns to Chris Haddix, the county’s judge-executive. In an email provided to the Herald-Leader, Haddix told Carver that Wilson had promised not to do any work related to the drag show on county time or equipment.

Haddix wrote that he approached Wilson about the petition drop-off and she said she did not write the note on the back but would make sure that it’s corrected.

When the Herald-Leader reached Wilson for comment on a county phone line, Wilson said she couldn’t talk about it while at work and gave a different number to call after hours. A call to that number was not returned.

The drag show will be a very “G-rated performance,” Campbell said. It’s not necessarily a family event but it would be fine if someone wanted their children to see it. There will be no nudity or sexual innuendo.

“This is not a midtown Manhattan drag show,” said Campbell. “This is a Mt. Sterling, Kentucky, drag show.”

The show is meant to be a celebration of drag as an art form, he said.

Drag as an art form

The mission of the Gateway Regional Arts Center is “all the arts for all the people,” Campbell said. For that reason, they have 150 programs per year that cover everything from arts inspired by the Bible to Black and women’s history months.

“Nobody ever protests those events though,” Campbell said. “There’s never any push back on Black History Month or Women’s History Month or Hispanic Heritage Month, you know, it’s Pride.”

The local chapter of a national political group, the Concerned Women for America, was working against the drag show, Campbell said. The group’s statewide director helped to organize a prayer vigil at a local church. Campbell said he and other members of the Gateway Regional Arts Center attended the vigil and were prayed over.

In a statement, Jennifer Pendleton, state director of the Concerned Women for America of Kentucky, said the group “believes in the value and dignity of biological females to flourish without repression, oppression and/or degradation.”

“The so-called ‘art form’ of drag shows incorporate gaudy makeup, lascivious clothing, and over-acted ‘female’ impersonation to cheapen the value of women and poke fun at the intrinsic beauty of biological females,” Pendleton said. “The performers often use offensive stereotypes that my great-grandmother, grandmother and mother all fought to overcome.”

Drag has a long history in western culture and manifests in community events, Campbell said, noting that local fundraising events have included men dressing as women for years. Drag is also not just for men, he said, adding that Saturday’s performance will also have women.

“It is men and women who are dressed up in fun costumes, and wigs, and lip synching to songs,” Campbell said of Saturday’s show. “It is not a stripper onstage. There’s no nudity involved. There’s no sexual innuendo for the show we have, we’ve talked to all of the performers.”

Campbell said some of the push back the show has gotten has raised its visibility. In May the arts center received more donations than in any month this year. Sign ups for future events, Facebook and website traffic have all increased. Mt. Sterling had its first pride festival last year and Campbell said there was a small number of protesters.

The Mt. Sterling Pride Festival will take place Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the DuBois Community Center. Aside from the drag show and brunch, the Gateway Regional Arts Center will also be hosting a gallery opening Friday with art from Bath County native Cierra Evans and a concert with queer, bluegrass artist Justin Hiltner Sunday night.